Passau versus Salzburg

What does this mean? If you read about all things to do and see in Salzburg you wouldn’t leave your ship to spend a few hours in Salzburg? Or are you having to make a choice between two excursions, Passau or Salzburg?

choice between Passau or Salzburg where Salzburg will be a bus trip of 1.5 hours each way.

This is tough because they are BOTH incredible towns and I would not want to choose. We've taken 3 Danube River Cruises and thankfully have not had to make the choice as we stopped at both.

Salzburg and Passau are BOTH worth seeing. If you do not want the three hr bus ride, Passau will NOT disappoint. There are 2 gorgeous cathedrals worth seeing, one has the largest organ in Europe. There is a very old Gingerbread shop (Simons) that is worth exploring. Lots of great streets to walk down, shops to explore, places to eat. Walking along the water is also nice.

I do hope one day you get back there to see Salzburg too because those are two of my favorite towns in Europe - we have been to Passau three times and Salzburg four times and would love to return. You really can't go wrong with either.

Thank you

Having been to both cities several times, I think I’d choose Salzburg even with its 1.5h bus ride each way. If you look at the itinerary for Passau it involves a 1.5h walking tour then you have free time to explore for the rest of the day. It’s a very compact city.

Salzburg is a 1.5h fairly scenic ride away and once there your morning is filled with a guided tour through lunch time with music. Then it would appear that you have a couple more hours to explore on your own before you head back to the boat in this 9.5h excursion.

Both cities are beautiful and interesting you can’t go wrong. You’ll need to read up on both and try to envision the pace of how you’d like to spend your day.

Disclaimer: I got this type of itinerary from a current Viking Danube cruise. I don’t know what cruise you are taking.